Safe??,  Come on, everywhere in Stevens Point is Safe!

     My city of Tallahassee has the highest crime rate per capita of any city in Florida (including Miami!)  The crime is concentrated primarily in one or two areas of Tallahassee... but if I name those areas, my remarks could be construed as racist.

     So, I give clients the websites and telephone numbers for the Leon County Sheriff, and the Tallahassee Police Department.  They will provide crime statistics for any area that a Buyer is considering.

Fred Griffin makes an excellent point. Real estate pros have to be very careful in describing "safe" or "unsafe" areas. If you have data available for crime rates, you are likely safe giving them the data. However, I would avoid analyzing it for them for liability purposes. 

I refer them to various apps that I know of and suggest referring to crime stats on other local sites.

I am VERY clear to tell them that I cannot legally have or share an opinion, and that is why I cannot be more forthcoming. (I like to stay legal) 

I do not. There are plenty of resources online for them to research that info including just calling the police station of that area.

David Landau This is a topic we are not allowed to discuss with potential clients. We are instructed to have them call the local police department for this information or if it deals with Megan's Law we send them to the our State Police site.

I explain that is information I cannot provide, they must point the direction for neighborhoods they want and I'll find the houses.  I do however give them local law enforcement links and phone numbers to check themselves.

Be careful.  What one person considers safe may be another's opinion.

See Fred Griffin comment.

Refer to local law enforcement agencies.   "Safe" has many definitions.  

I don't. This is the kind of research I tell my clients they need to do on their own if it's a concern for them. At the end of the day I do not want to be associated in any way with someone making a decision based on safety from something I gave them... what it it turns out to be otherwise? 

First I ask, "What do you want or will use to validate if a community meets your safety criteria?"

If they say crime reports posted by city law enforcement I will provide the documentation that governs what is reported. For instance two adjacent cities Dunedin and Clearwater report crime activity much differently. One will appear crime riddled, the other safe but the truth is the opposite.

In the end I will advise the very risk adverse "I won't show you real estate that I would not want my mother to live in." If needed I can point out the iron work adorning many houses in the communities where I would not have mom moving in.

I also advise you have no control over who may move into the community tomorrow.

The buyer may ask, "Why are you not showing me 123 Gunbattle Lane?"

I will reply, "That house does not meet the criteria you shared with me on the first day."

I stay away from the topic. and say they should check online.

They can do their own search of police reports. 

I have my customers contact the Sheriff and ask them

We have a list of websites and county resources for current data.

Plenty of websites for that. I just refer them and stay out of it. Same with schools.

The Washington Post has a good site with crime stats.  That's where I send people.

If my clients are concerned about this, I send them to the local police station. 

I tell them to do their own research to see if it meets their standards. I recommend that they drive the neighborhood.

I suggest they talk to the local police dept

I suggest they talk to the neighbors, check with the local police department, and use a website like www.CrimeMapping.com. Safety can mean all sorts of things to different people

I always refer them to Trulia or other sites that have crime rates and stats.  

I disclosure to the buyer my own personal knowledge of any criminal activity of which i'm aware. Perceptions of crime can e quite different from one person to another, and merely answering that a neighborhood is or isn't safe is going to depend on a personal opinion. The best way to check the safety of that location: to provide a client with s source of the information so they verify it by themselves. 

Well, Thousand Oaks is one of the top five safest cities in the nation with over 100,000 people for the last 20 years or so...

Other than that, I just point people to the cops.  I'm not qualified to answer those questions (although I actually do know the answers).

I tell clients here are phone numbers or websites for schools to get information and police departments to check out the area.  Do it for all clients

I would have that buyer do their on research.

I dont do safe neigborhoods. I help sell Real Estate. Dilligence does safe or not

I refer them back to the AAR Buyer Advisory which has links (in the electronic version) which allows them to do their own research...

I give them the phone numbers for the local police and sheriff departments.

Provide sources to obtain information. Not everyone thinks at the same level. Let them make their own choices!

David Landau - there are some neighborhood scout sites...

Let them decide.

We are not the one to decide which home is safer compared to other homes...

Local Police reports.

Safety is in the eyes of the beholder.  The police department and government statistics is where to refer interested parties.

Keller, TX is ranked like #7 in the US by Money Mag. It's nuts how nice... No one has every asked this question. Yet... this post (I referenced it on another blog host site) got a LOT of attention...  

http://www.safewise.com/blog/safest-cities-texas-2015/ 

So... if you can find a third party source to reference and sort of "stay out of it" that is probably... safest. haha.

We are not baseball umpires and really should refrain from saying, "You're SAFE!" Reference another study or the cops :) We are the house guru, not the crime and safety guru.

As long as there are people there will be crime.  Want a safe place buy an island.

Ha! Safety today. Please show me where that is!